Proceedings of the General Court of Catalonia held in Barcelona under the reign of Peter II

Date: 1283

Archive: Municipal Archive of Barcelona

Document type: Textual

Reference code: CAT-AHCB-AHCB1-002-1A-100

Link to the online document

Description: The General Court of Catalonia was the legislative body of the Principality between the 13th and 18th centuries. It is considered the oldest parliament in Europe, witness to a passionate system between the king and the three arms (royal or towns and cities, military or nobility and ecclesiastical).
The Courts held in Barcelona in 1283 are considered pivotal because it instituted the obligation to convene courts on the part of monarchs, the need for the agreement of the three arms for the approval of any constitution and the previous constitutions, both derived from the Peace and Truce assemblies and others agreed between 1202 and 1241, were reconfirmed.
The document, one of the oldest that the AHCB possesses from the Catalan courts, shows the signatures of Pere II and the infant Alfonso as well as those of the representatives of the three arms: the military on the left, the ecclesiastical in the center and the royal on the right.

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